Watching the gold and silver being loaded onto the ships, along with the captured members of the Cui family.
Chai Shao clapped Fang Er on the shoulder. "Kid, how about we take a detour and take care of that old Li family in Zhaojun too?"
Fang Er wasn't very familiar with the locations of these aristocratic families.
"Where is Zhaojun?"
Yuchi Jingde exhaled a ring of smoke and pointed westward. "About two hundred li west from here."
Fang Er raised an eyebrow. "There definitely won't be a waterway there for the Wuyan warships. If we go on foot, by the time we get there, the old Li family will have already fled, won't they?"
Just then, the sound of horse hooves approached from the north.
Following the sound, a troop of cavalry was galloping towards them.
Chai Shao looked puzzled. "Are those from the Hundred Riders Division?"
The cavalry also saw the large ships stopped here and approached them.
"This is He San'er from the Hundred Riders Division."
"Greetings to the Duke of Qiao, Duke of E, and Marquis of Liaodong!"
Chai Shao stroked his beard. "Are you on official business?"
He San'er replied, "Reporting to Your Grace, the Emperor ordered us to scout ahead and ascertain the strength of the Hebei Cui family."
Chai Shao chuckled. "No need. The Qinghe Cui family has already been taken down by us!"
"How far is His Majesty from here?"
He San thought for a moment and then said, "If all goes as planned, he should arrive tomorrow."
Fang Er, Chai Shao, and Yuchi Jingde exchanged glances. "Well, we can't leave now."
They decided to stay there for a day and wait for the Yangwei Army.
At noon the next day, the Yangwei Army arrived at Qinghe Commandery.
"Your subjects pay their respects to His Majesty!"
Fang Er stepped forward and bowed to Li Shimin.
Li Shimin reached out to support him. "Rise. You've taken down the Qinghe Cui family?"
Chai Shao nodded. "All of them. Not a single one of the Cui family heads or their brothers escaped. The confiscated money and treasures have all been loaded onto the ships."
Through several exchanges, Fang Er and the others learned that Li Shimin had already annihilated the Fanyang Lu family. However, when he was preparing to go after the Boling Cui family, the Hundred Riders Division discovered that the place had been abandoned long ago.
If that was the case, then the remaining Zhao County Li family and Taiyuan Wang family were likely in a similar situation.
Li Shimin was very displeased but could do nothing. Pursuing them with troops was impossible, as Li Yuan's body was still waiting for him in the palace.
There was no need to send people to guard the granaries in Qinghe Commandery. They were to be loaded onto carts and taken back to Chang'an along with the sweet potatoes.
The fleet traveled by water, while the Yangwei Army went by land. They advanced side-by-side towards Chang'an.
A few days later, both parties returned to Chang'an almost simultaneously.
Changsun Wuji, Du Ruhui, and other civil and military officials who had remained in the court were informed and had already gone ten li outside the city to greet them.
However, Li Shimin's mood was very poor. The closer he got to Chang'an, the heavier his heart became.
He perfunctorily dealt with the welcoming officials and returned to his pickup truck. "Return to the palace!"
Cheng Yaojin started the vehicle and sped towards the imperial palace.
Fang Er, with his fleet, headed directly to the Ba River Shipyard to disembark.
As the fleet docked, Qi Sui, Wu Yong, Li Shun, Zhao Gang, and others were already waiting there.
Upon seeing Fang Er, they all dropped to their knees.
"Your subordinates failed to protect the premises, resulting in the workshop's destruction. We beg Your Lordship to punish us!"
Fang Er glanced casually at the current shipyard. The overall damage to the shipyard was not too severe, and the artisans were working on repairs. Stepping off the Zhenyuan from the gangway, he said to them, "All of you, rise and tell me properly what happened back then!"
"Yes!"
Qi Sui and the others rose and began to recount the events to Fang Er.
After listening, Fang Er couldn't help but feel a chill of fear. If Zhao Gang hadn't taken half of the assault team and artisans from other workshops to prepare for the opening of the "New Oriental" school, they might have been wiped out completely. This was the only fortunate thing. At least, with people like Zhao Gang and Li Shun around, rebuilding the workshop wouldn't be too difficult.
"Alright, it's destroyed, it's destroyed. We'll build bigger and better ones later!"
Zhao Gang said with great heartache, "Your Lordship, what about the machines?"
Dozens of machine tools were either stolen or destroyed. Currently, there was only one teaching machine tool of each type at the "New Oriental" school.
Fang Er waved his hand. "It's fine. Everything will be alright."
These words brought some relief to their hearts. They had originally expected Fang Er to severely punish them upon his return, but he had let it pass so lightly.
However, the next moment, Fang Er's face turned cold as he looked at Qi Sui and Wu Yong. "What about the sacrificed and injured brothers? How are they now?"
Qi Sui lowered his head, not daring to meet Fang Er's eyes. "Your Lordship, the sacrificed brothers have been buried with the brothers who returned from Pyongyang. The injured brothers are at the Taoist temple, being cared for by Master Yuan and Master Sun."
The entire defense force had been devastated, and Wu Yong's Fourth Battalion had also suffered losses. In total, that night, Fang Family Manor lost nearly a thousand soldiers and artisans, not counting the property.
Guan Chang suddenly emerged from behind Fang Er and grabbed Qi Sui by the collar of his clothes. "What happened to the Prince?"
Qi Sui dared not look him in the eye. "Luo, Luo Yi was killed by Hou Junji's men!"
Guan Chang suddenly spewed out a mouthful of blood. The others from the Yan Yun cavalry were no better. They crouched on the ground, holding their heads and weeping. They had all been adopted by Luo Yi, and to them, Luo Yi was like a father. Now, he had been killed by Hou Junji.
Guan Chang's eyes were bloodshot as he looked at Fang Er. "Your Lordship! I wish to go and pursue Hou Junji! I beg Your Lordship for permission!"
Fang Er turned and looked at these eighteen men. "Liu Meng! Go to the ship and get them a thousand taels of gold as travel expenses!"
A moment later, a chest of gold was placed before the Yan Yun cavalry.
Guan Chang and the others said in unison, "Many thanks for Your Lordship's great kindness!"
ps: Second update.